Are you selling a home? Not sure you have what it takes to sell it quickly at a price you like? 

What most people don't realize is that even if they have never done anything like selling a property, they already possess multiple skills to make it happen.

The trick is to treat staging and selling like a job, even if you think you never had a job like this before.

I've had a winding career path, and at the time, the different positions I've held didn't seem all that connected. But looking back, I can see how each one built on the previous one.

I'm reminded of some career advice I've heard. Simply stated, it is, "If you change fields, bring all the skills you’ve learned with you."

This means seeing your career as a flow, where one experience adds to the following. Everyone has transferable skills.

Most Americans change jobs every four years on average. So, it's possible you'll have 10 or more jobs in your career, each one with built-in lessons. You're bound to have learned from those jobs,  from books you've read, people you've known, and hobbies you've enjoyed. Bring all this to the project of staging and selling your present home.

It's easy. To start, ask yourself these questions. What jobs have you worked? What were the requirements of each job? What are your special skills, the things at which you excel? What do you really love doing? What have you studied?

For example, let's take a look at some different personalities and how they can help you stage your own home. 
Are you a reader who enjoys studying data? 

Numbers gal

If you have an accountant's training, you already know how to track expenses and project costs and profits. If numbers don't confuse or intimidate you, you've got what it takes to "run the business" of staging your own home.

Extrovert

If you've been praised for your exceptional people skills, you will know how to negotiate with suppliers for good prices, find prospective home buyers, and build a good relationship with a real estate agent. These are the "soft skills" that not everyone has but will come in handy when you decide to stage your home. 

Geek

If you have current and quick computer skills, you’ll be able to use the Internet for locating bargains as well as information. Perhaps you can help your Realtor style a good listing page and photos. When you won't let iPhones and Instagram and Pinterest and eBay intimidate you, you'll be ahead of older people and others who shun the Internet. 

Intellectual

If you would rather read than do anything else, you can study the local real estate market to make better staging and selling decisions. Like any business, the business of staging and selling has lots to do with gathering opinions, data, and information about trends. 

Artist or Crafter

If you are a collector or a skilled craftsperson, put your trained eye to work selecting or creating the best decor items to display. Even if you don't produce your own wall art or sew your own pillow covers, your experience will steer you right whether you are arranging furniture, choosing a paint color, or staging bookshelves.   

Manager

If you are accustomed to overseeing a staff, you’ll be good at setting goals, delegating and scheduling. If your home is large, if you are in a rush to get staged, if you have a full-time job, or if you are staging a vacant property, you'll probably be hiring help or getting friends or family to assist you. That's when your managerial experience will come in handy.

Buyer

A passionate shopper can put her skills to work finding good buys for staging. People I know who are known for scoring deals are patient people. They don't shy away from doing the homework, whether it's reading labels, researching customer reviews, or visiting different websites or brick-and-mortar stores. They don't make impulse purchases and they get creative about sourcing. Is that you?

Get the look, get the book 

Have some fun defining your present skillset  -- all the experience you've gained along the way to where you are today. This personal profile you define will be an indispensable beginning of your home staging and selling projects.

Use your list to determine how best to use your time, and when you need to introduce a professional or expert to help. I promise the list will boost your confidence and be an indispensable beginning to your home selling and staging projects.

And don't begin your home-selling adventure until you have read my home staging eBook.